


Bad Luck isn't Really all that Bad

by SleepyxAsh



Series: Baby Steps [2]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2018-11-13
Packaged: 2019-08-08 19:20:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16435337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SleepyxAsh/pseuds/SleepyxAsh
Summary: Takes place in chapter 10 of Baby Steps. Izuna is on a date when is he caught staring at another woman and is publicly dumped. His day takes a panicking turn in a completely new direction when the woman that he was staring at turns out to be his soulmate.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be a one-shot, but it was looking to be a lot longer than what I expected, so I went ahead and just broke it into two different parts.

Izuna was bored. Sure, the girl that he was with, Sora, was definitely a looker with long, blond hair and large, blue eyes, but she wasn’t very talkative. She wouldn’t speak to him on their way to the overpriced restaurant that she wanted to go to. He was already getting a bit weary of her and was starting to believe that she was going to end up being more high-maintenance than anything else.

He looked down at her and saw that she was staring straight ahead, her stance rigid as though she was uncomfortable. He had a sneaking suspicion that she didn’t really want to be there. Part of him was offended, mostly because he considered himself to be a pretty good-looking guy and a great conversationalist. She should have been _thrilled_ that he had asked her out.

“Is everything alright?” he found himself asking. Maybe there was something wrong that was on her mind.

“I’m fine,” she said, turning toward him. She gave him a reassuring smile, but there was something forced about it. He wanted to press further on the issue but just let it go. He didn’t want to push her away anymore than she already seemed to be. This was a date, which was supposed to be fun. There would be no fun if she was going to be this awkward the entire time. He would just have to get her to loosen up when they got to the restaurant.

The streets got busier as they made it to the market district. Shop keepers were shouting at them to stop by and try their products, but Izuna and Sora kept walking past. They were about halfway through when they were forced to stop, workers were trying to push a large convoy of carts across the pathway. Something told him to look to his right.

His eyes widened as he saw a female shinobi standing with her back to him. Her long brown hair was hanging down, almost reaching her waist…and what a lovely waist it was, narrow before it rounded into wide hips and a very plush bottom. His mouth went dry for a moment before an overflow of saliva took over. He felt a small bit of drool at the corner of his lip and that was when he jumped, and hurriedly looked away.

It was too late, however.

As soon as he looked back at Sora and saw that she was looking directly at him, he knew he’d screwed up. Her blue eyes practically had flames raging in them as she looked up at him in unadulterated disgust. “I knew it!” she screamed. Izuna jumped back, startled by the outburst. She pointed an accusing finger at him. “My friends told me that you were nothing but a total pig! We’re on a date, and you’re looking at other women!”

“Maybe if you’d actually talk to me, I might not have been looking around!” Izuna snapped back defensively. “Besides, it’s not my fault that she has a nice ass!”

“You pervert!” she screeched.

Izuna saw the hand flying forward, and could have dodged it, but he just stood there and took the slap to the face. Partially because he probably deserved it and partially because he figured that it would probably cause even more of a scene if he did move out of the way.

His head snapped to the side when she connected. He shut his eyes in defeat as he slowly turned back to look at her. She was already turning away and he just watched her walk off resignedly.

He looked away after she had disappeared through the crowed and saw that most people nearby had turned and looked at him, including the woman that he had gotten in trouble for staring at. His mouth dropped open as him and the woman locked eyes. It was Toka Senju. He immediately looked away from the woman and saw, with no small amount of relief, that the carts had cleared out. He quickly took off down the street, putting as much space between him and Toka as he could.

He was nearly out of the market area when he saw a familiar head of fluffy, white hair. He wanted to bypass the other man completely. He had just been caught gawking at the other man’s cousin, and he wasn’t sure if he was feeling guilty over that or not. Normally, he had no shame in his game, but he _worked_ with Toka, and she was his best friend’s cousin. Did it count that he didn’t know that it had been Toka that he had been looking at? He didn’t think that it did.

Tobirama hadn’t seen him yet. He could get away with not stopping by….

 _If you see Tobirama, could you give him a message for me?_ He remembered that Madara had asked him to pass something on to his soulmate earlier that day. He shut his eyes and sighed in defeat. He was going to have to talk to him now. He had promised Madara that he would, and he would feel bad about it if he didn’t.

He schooled his expression before perking up, pretending that absolutely nothing was wrong as he bounded forward. As he got closer, he saw that Hashirama was there as well. “Hey, guys!” he shouted, making sure that his voice was loud enough to carry through the sizable crowd. Both men turned around and searched for a moment before locating him. Izuna power walked toward them, crossing the distance quickly.

“Hey Izuna!” Hashirama greeted him in his usual cheery manner. There was a bag of some sort on his wrist and it swung from side to side as he waved at him. “What’s up?”

“I was actually on my way to a date,” he admitted sheepishly. There was no point in lying about that.

“Then why are you stopping to talk to us?” Tobirama asked him, suspicious as always. His eyes were already narrowed as though he was searching for whatever it was that Izuna was trying to hide. Izuna had to fight back the urge to get defensive.

He smiled guiltily at them. “She, uh…well, she caught me staring at someone else and got pissed,” he sighed. His hand came up to the back of his head and he rubbed the spot as he shrugged, as though silently asking _what can you do._ Tobirama’s eyebrow rose, as though he had a few comments about that, but he seemed to decide to keep those opinions silent. “She dumped me and ran home.”

“Who were you staring at?” Hashirama asked. Izuna saw his Hokage lean forward like an old woman trying to get her hands on a juicy bit of gossip. He supposed—despite the obvious flaws in the other’s personality—that he at least acted right when the situation called for it.

“Not important,” he said immediately, shutting down that direction of conversation before it could ever start. He turned and looked at Tobirama and said, “Big brother is looking for you. He said something about needing to give you something. You might want to stop by his house after you finish shopping.”

The suspicious expression that he had been wearing before shifted to a curious frown. Apparently, whatever it was that Madara wanted to give the other man wasn’t something that Tobirama knew about. That was curious in itself, but it was also a conversation to be had on a later date.

Sadly, the other man was only hung up on this for a moment. After that, he was right back to the previous subject. Izuna.

“Don’t change the subject, Izuna,” Tobirama told him. Izuna watched in horror as his friend’s lips began twitching in one corner. He was trying to fight off a smile. He was enjoying this! “Who is she?”

“Who said that it’s a she?” Izuna demanded, grasping at anything that might throw them off their questioning. Pretending to be indignant and offended might work out just fine. He crossed his arms over his chest and scowled at them, faking a hurt expression.

“We didn’t mean to be so presumptuous!” Hashirama shouted quickly, waving his arms around in the air.

Bingo.

Hashirama really was too easy. “Of course, I don’t care if it’s a man or a woman as long as you’re happy, and you both—”

“Don’t panic, fool,” Tobirama cut his brother off. Of course, he would be so much more difficult to throw off. “Of course, it’s a woman. Izuna has never expressed any interest in men before and has turned down countless offers from different men around the village, some of them the most desirable and attractive that Konoha has to offer. So, Izuna…who is _she_ , and why are you being so secretive about it?”

Izuna looked from side to side helplessly. He was out of options and felt like a cornered animal. _This is what Madara has in store for him as a soulmate…poor bastard. Better him than me, I suppose._ Suddenly, a light exploded in his mind as he saw a pathetic excuse as a way out.

“You know what,” Izuna said slowly, taking a small step back. He would have to make a run for it before he could be stopped and called out on his bullshit. “I think I left a couple of kunai back at the guard post. I really should go and get them before they disappear. They’re really not that cheap to replace, and all that.”

He quickly spun around and took off back into the crowd, disappearing from them before either one of them could call out to him.

That was close, and he figured that this wouldn’t be over. He had acted way too suspicious for his own good.

He knew that he was going in the opposite direction of his house, but if he didn’t go to the guard posts, then Tobirama would know if he bothered checking…that was depending on how invested he was on the whole thing, but he figured that it was better safe than sorry. He dragged his feet there, not bothering to be in a hurry. He had nothing better to do with his day. He would probably just train for the rest of the afternoon.

 

He was frustrated as he practiced throwing kunai. It was such a distracting feeling that he missed the target more times than a genin would. He didn’t even have it in himself to be ashamed of it. He would probably force himself to come out and attempt to remaster the basics of being a ninja some other time.

Why was it always him that had the shittiest luck with women? All he wanted was a woman that appreciated him properly. It wasn’t as though he was looking for one that worshipped him, but was it too much to ask for him to have one that wasn’t expecting the worst out of him every single moment that they were together?

He didn’t even know where the rumor that he was a total man-whore had come from, but it was really starting to piss him off. Sure, he dated a lot of girls, but it wasn’t like he slept with every woman that he was with. A lot of the time stupid things happened—today was a great example—way before he was close to that step. His reputation was completely ruined, and he knew that he was never going to be able to settle down. He wanted kids someday, and it was never going to happen if he couldn’t find a woman that trusted him enough for them to have a serious relationship together.

He cursed and stopped, giving up when one of his kunai pierced into a neighboring tree rather than going onto the target. He wasn’t getting anywhere with this exercise, and it was just putting him into an even worse mood when he missed.

“Sounds like you’re having a really rough day,” a woman’s voice called from behind him. Toka Senju walked forward slowly, one of his kunai in her hand. She was twirling it around her index finger effortlessly. That show of skill made his heart race. He had always thought that powerful and capable women was a turn on and was now wondering how he hadn’t realized exactly how sexy Toka was.

“That woman you were with earlier was a bit of a bitch,” she informed him as she walked over and handed him his weapon back. “You might want to go after some that are a little less catty.”

Izuna breathed out a laugh as he grabbed the handle of the kunai and placed it back in his weapon’s pouch. “No kidding,” he agreed. “I didn’t realize that she was psycho, or I would never have asked her out.”

“Well, here’s some dating advice for you,” she said as she backed away from him and leaned against one of the trees in the clearing. “Why don’t you get to know the woman before you ask her out? You’d be surprised how many bullets you’d dodge.”

“You might be right,” Izuna allowed. “I might actually have to take you up on that idea. I’m getting pretty sick of being screamed at all the time like I’m some sort of sick pervert, anyway.”

“It’d also help if you weren’t staring at someone’s ass while you’re out on a date,” Toka informed him. “I probably would have broken a bone for that one.”

Izuna had to fight back a sigh of relief. Toka hadn’t realized that it had been _her_ ass that he’d been staring at before. That might have been the first good thing that had happened to him that day.

“That’s why I mostly date civilian women,” Izuna informed her. “They’re tough, but they’ve got nothing on shinobi.”

“I always thought that you liked powerful chicks,” Toka said, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m not saying that a civilian woman can’t be powerful, but you said it yourself, shinobi women are on a completely different level.”

“They are,” Izuna agreed. “I would love to date a kunoichi, but it’s just that I haven’t found the right one yet.” He smiled and said, “They’re very special ladies, and I respect them more than damn near anyone. I would have to feel very strongly about one to ask them out.”

“Enough of that mushy bullshit,” Toka said, obviously sick of the subject at hand. “It’s obvious that you’re here to get your mind off things. Fight me.”

Izuna blinked uncomprehendingly and Toka pushed herself off the tree trunk and said, “Come on, Uchiha. Let’s spar. I’m in the mood to throw down, and I’m sure that you are too.”

Izuna smiled at her and said, “Alright, Senju. Let’s see if you’ve softened up since the last mission we were on together.”

 

They danced around each other at first, each trying to land soft blows on the other, but they weren’t able to make contact. Both of them were much too skilled for either to go easy on. It only took Izuna a few minutes to realize this.

“Okay,” he said as he dodged a weakly thrown kick. “If you stop holding back, then I will too. We’re not going to have any fun like this.”

Toka grinned at him; a maniacal light began shining in her eyes. “I’ll stop going easy on you if you promise to do the same for me.”

“Deal,” Izuna nodded. They both backed up and began circling the other. “Let’s make it interesting. Taijutsu only. First one on their back loses.”

“Prepared to get knocked on your ass,” Toka advised him before she sprang forward.

He blocked her first kick with his forearm and grabbed at her ankle, slinging the rest of her body toward him as he tried to knock out her other foot and make her lose balance. She jumped up before he could and swung a braced forearm at his head. He ducked forward to dodge it and had to let her go before she could wrap herself around him like a koala and use her weight to wrestle him down. He quickly backed away with a grin on his face, becoming more and more intrigued as the seconds ticked by.

“You’re good…for a Senju,” Izuna informed her.

“Both of my cousins could kick your ass,” Toka replied smartly. Her voice was humorous, and Izuna knew that she didn’t mean anything by the comment.

Before he could come up with a cocky reply, she was back on him. He quickly forgot about the short conversation in favor of concentrating on blocking and countering her moves. One wrong step and he would be the loser.

 

They fought for what felt like hours and were evenly matched throughout the entire thing. It had to have been a while, however, because the sun was beginning to sink down. He was winded as he finally called out a truce. “We’re both good,” he said as they finally stopped fighting. He grinned at her as he wiped sweat off his forehead and watched as she did the same. “I’m almost certain that you could kick your cousins’ asses.”

She laughed at that and shrugged. “We trained together when we were younger. You have to train really hard to keep up with a pair of such talented and powerful boys.”

Izuna nodded in agreement. He knew all about having to give it your all just to try and keep up with a prodigy. He had done the same with his older brother, the star of the Uchiha clan. A lowly glinting object caught his eye and he turned to see one of his kunai sticking out of the dirt. He slowly walked over to it and listened as Toka said, “You’re really good, Uchiha. I don’t think I’ve had a workout like that in a while.”

He turned his head and grinned at her as he leaned down to grab the knife.

“I’m going to be sore in the morning,” she continued, her back bowing forward as she stretched. “Hell, I’m a bit sore now.”

He couldn’t look away as she leaned forward, as though she was attempting to touch her toes, obviously trying to stretch out a sore muscle in her back. He wasn’t trying to think of the reason that she had done that, however. He was too busy looking at the peripheral view of her ass…such a nice ass.

 _Ouch!_ His palm had come down on the blade of the knife and the sharp edge had sliced into the skin deep. He could already feel blood welling around the cut.

“Dammit!” Toka cursed, straightening back up at the same time that he’d cut himself. She was gripping her right hand in her left one and holding both of them up to her ample bosom. “I swear, my soulmate is a klutz! He’s always cutting or hurting himself! How does an idiot hurt their own palm?!”

Izuna promptly felt the blood run out of his face as panic began to settle at the pit of his stomach. Before he could make an ass out of himself, and that damn Uchiha family trait of blurting out words while under duress came back at him with full-force, he quickly shouted, “I’ve gotta go!” before turning around and dashing out of the forest.

He didn’t care if he had acted suspicious or if she thought that he was an uncaring prick. He was moments away from freaking out as an unsettling realization was finally making its way to his mind.

_She’s my soulmate…there’s no way that’s a coincidence._

He quickly began rushing toward Madara's house. He really needed to speak to an adult, and Madara was the only one that he could think of in his moment of need. His brother would be able to help him. His big brother would make everything alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that you all enjoyed this! Feel free to let me know what you thought of it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, here's the last chapter. I hope you enjoy!

By the time that Izuna got to Madara's house, he was nearing a mental breakdown. He wasn’t sure if he was having the correct reaction, but it was there anyway. _My soulmate’s a Senju! She’s amazing, and beautiful, and a total warrior. She’s way out of my league, and I don’t have a chance. There’s no way that this is going to work out._

Those were just a few of the thoughts that were running through his head. He was past the point of no return with this as he pushed Madara's door open, not bothering to knock. He needed his brother right away, and nothing as stupid as social etiquette was going to stop him from getting to him.

“Madara!” Izuna shouted panickedly. “I think that Toka’s my soulmate—” He immediately cut himself off as he looked upon a horrifying and nauseating scene with widened eyes. Madara was laying on top of Tobirama on the couch, playing tonsil tennis with him. As soon as Izuna rushed into the room, however, Madara and Tobirama both turned and looked at him with identical expressions of shock.

His stomach twisted painfully as he slowly began to realize exactly what he had walked in on. “Oh, sweet miserable hell!” he shouted, his mind finally breaking. He just couldn’t take anymore of this. “My poor eyes!” he moaned, doubling over and clutching at his stomach. “What the fuck did I just see!? I’m never going to be the same again! My poor virgin eyes! I’m never going to be able to sleep again! Oh, the nightmares are going to be brutal. I think I’m going to be sick…oh god, I’m going to be sick!”

The last thing that he needed was to see was his brother’s lovesick expression, and how flush his face was from making out with one of his best friends.

Izuna saw Tobirama lay his head back on the cushion, out of his sight. That was actually a blessing. Tobirama’s face was the same as Madara's and he didn’t need to see both expressions at once. He didn’t think that his poor stomach or psyche could take to much more of it.

“Izuna!” Madara snapped at him, cutting off his ramblings. That tone made him immediately clam up. He looked at Madara with wide, teary eyes. “Get out!”

Izuna spun around and dashed toward the door, leaving the house as fast as he could. He scurried down the pathway and took off down the road, toward his own home. If he wasn’t able to speak to Madara at the moment, then he just needed to be by himself. He didn’t want anyone else seeing him so unsightly.

He made it into the living room and shuffled to his comfy chair, slowly sinking down into the overstuffed leather, and put his head in his hands. He only sat there for a few moments before his door opened.

He looked up wearily and saw Madara walking inside. Izuna looked away from his brother, unsure how long it would be before he could look him in the eyes. His stomach was still rolling, and he wasn’t sure if it was due to anxiety from the scene that he’d just escaped from or if it was from Toka.

He heard his brother’s footsteps and felt a supportive hand at his shoulder a moment later. “What happened?” Madara's voice was gentle, kind and caring…everything that he’d needed to hear.

“I…we…Madara, I don’t know what to do!” he wailed. “She’s beautiful, and amazing, and so tough! There’s no way that she’s going to accept me. She’s way out of my league.”

“Hey,” Madara told him, “that’s not the way that you need to think. If she’s really your soulmate, then there’s something about you that’s going to draw her in. It’s the way that the world works.”

“Like you and Tobirama?” Izuna couldn’t help but ask. A spark of hope flared in his chest as he realized what the scene that he’d walked into meant. If they were together, then anything was possible…at least he hoped so. They were actually perfect for each other, however. Those two had been the only ones that didn’t know it.

“Yes,” Madara said, squeezing his shoulder lightly. Madara knelt down next to the chair and said, “I didn’t want to like Tobirama, but he’s turned into something very important to my life. He really is my soulmate, and I’m happier than I’ve ever been. Izuna, if Toka is your soulmate, then I think that you should pursue it. I want you to have the same happiness that I’ve found. You deserve it too.”

“I don’t think that you understand,” Izuna protested. “She’s…she’s…too good for me.”

“How?” Madara asked.

“You know the rumors that are floating around the village about me,” Izuna replied. “The last thing that I want is anyone as awesome as her to be associated with something like that.”

“You mean that rumors that aren’t actually true?” Madara questioned, sounding totally unimpressed. “Everyone that matters knows that you just have really bad luck with women. Toka is a good person, and she doesn’t put any stock in gossip. I think that you need to go to her, apologize for any misunderstanding that you doubtlessly caused—”

“Why do you think that _I_ caused a misunderstanding?” Izuna demanded.

“You’re my brother,” Madara informed him. “We both do a lot of stupid and strange things when we panic, and I know that you probably ran off before you could lose it in front of her.”

Izuna made a noise of agreement, admitting to it without any trouble. Madara knew him too well.

“She’s probably confused,” Madara told him. “She’s probably a bit upset by it too. If you wait too long, she’s going to get angry and the last thing that you want to deal with is an angry Senju, especially with something like this. She might shut down and it’s going to be even harder for you to talk to her about this.”

“You think so?” Izuna questioned.

Madara nodded, and Izuna inhaled deeply and blew out slowly, clearing his mind and pushing down his anxiety. “Alright,” he said. “You’re probably right.” He felt his courage coming back and immediately began kicking himself for chickening out so badly. He pushed himself out of the chair and turned to look at Madara. “I’m going to go and talk to her now…do you know where she would be?”

“I think that she’s got guard duty tonight,” Madara said. “She should be starting her shift in maybe half an hour.”

“Okay,” Izuna said. “I’ll go there.”

He turned away from his brother and walked to the front of the house. He hadn’t bothered taking off his shoes, so he was already ready to go.

“Izuna,” Madara said before he could open the door and walk out. Izuna turned around and looked at him, raising a questioning eyebrow.

“Yes?” Izuna questioned.

“The only reason that I’m not strangling you right now is because this is important,” Madara informed him. “Knock before you come into my house from now on.”

Izuna’s stomach churned as he thought of his brother and best friend on that couch. “Trust me,” Izuna said. “I’ve learned my lesson. It’ll be a long time before I ever set foot back in your house, and I’ll probably bring a bullhorn with me just to make sure that you know that I’m coming.”

“Quit being so overdramatic,” Madara told him.

Izuna didn’t think that he was being overdramatic, but he didn’t have time to argue with his brother. He had something to fix. He just gave him a halfhearted salute and walked out of the door.

 

 

Toka walked to the guard’s outpost to put her lunch in the fridge there. The last thing that she expected to see when she walked inside was an off-duty shinobi, and of all people, it was Izuna Uchiha. She had been trying to push away her confusion of him running out on her in the forest for the past hour and had been nearly successful up until she saw his face again.

She just stared at him with a raised eyebrow. “Did someone blackmail you into working their shift?” she finally asked.

“No,” Izuna remarked. “I…I was actually here to talk to you.” He was wringing his hands together nervously, and Toka winced as her own hand began to throb. She had a feeling that she knew what this was all about, and she didn’t know how she felt about it. Trying to buy herself time to get herself mentally ready for it, she decided to just play stupid.

“What did you need?” she asked, pulling a corner of her lips up into a smirk. “Did you want to challenge me again?” She cracked her knuckles and said, “I’m certain that I’ll kick your ass this time around.”

Izuna’s eyes widened at her remark, and she noticed a small flush coming alive on his cheeks. He looked…dumbstruck and enamored. Toka had to fight the instinct to look around and see who else was in the empty building with them, because there was no way that someone as handsome as Izuna Uchiha was looking at _her_ like that.

“You’re a goddess,” Izuna sighed, “has anyone ever told you that before?”

Toka’s eyes widened at this remark, and her own face heated. She opened her mouth to reply but didn’t know _what_ to say. Of course, she hadn’t heard that before. She had a reputation of being tough, independent and rowdy. Not very many men liked a woman that could beat them, so it wasn’t as though she was very high on any suitor’s list.

“Did I just say that out loud?” Izuna asked, his expression changing from awestruck to horrified. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back so that it slammed into the wooden wall behind him. “I’m so lame!”

“I didn’t think that was lame,” Toka said quickly. She took a step toward him and smiled, even though she was certain that her face resembled the complexion of a tomato rather than her normal pallor. “I thought that it was very kind of you to say. I’ve never been told that before; thank you.”

Izuna’s jaw dropped, “What?” he demanded angrily. “What do you mean no one has ever told you that before!? You look embarrassed, like you’re not used to being complimented! Are the men in this villages blind or something?”

Izuna sounded offended for her. She felt her face heat even more. She wasn’t sure how much more embarrassment she was going to be able to handle before she exploded. She opened her mouth to ward him off, but he just plowed on ahead, cutting her off before she could even get started.

“You’re amazing!” he stated. “You’re beautiful, fierce, commanding, and brave. You’re a perfect example of a female specimen, and all the other women in the village should aspire to be like you! I never approached you because I know that you are totally out of my league, and I know that you probably won’t give me the time of day, but damn…you really need to have someone telling you this!”

“Stop,” she said, hopefully hiding the desperation from her voice. “Thank you for the compliments, Izuna, really, but they are making me uncomfortable.”

Izuna shut his eyes, a look of absolute pain came over his face, and Toka wondered if she had been incorrect in her assumption. She didn’t feel any pain at all.

“I probably just completely screwed up any chance I had from by big mouth,” he sighed. His shoulders slumped in defeat. “You found that really creepy, didn’t you?”

“No!” she told him, shaking her head, though it was pointless since he still had his eyes shut. “I…I didn’t find it creepy. It was all really nice, but I just…I’m not used to it, and it just makes me uncomfortable is all.”

“As much as I’d love to stick around much longer,” Toka said. “I have to go for guard duty within the next ten minutes. You said that there was something you needed to talk with me about…what was it?”

Izuna’s eyes widened and he seemed to visibly shrink in on himself, as though he had forgotten the reason that he was there in the first place. Toka waited patiently for him to speak, though she felt a bit bad about being the one that made him feel so uncomfortable.

“What I…what I came here to talk to you about was…” he trailed off, his face reddening all over again. “Dammit!” he cursed, turning and punching the wall. “Why can’t I just say it!?” Toka noted a small crack in the boards. She probably shouldn’t be happy about that, but he had obviously practiced a bit of restraint, even in his frustration, since the entire wall wasn’t off.

“Say what?” Toka pressed. “Whatever it is, Izuna, I’m not going to freak out. Just tell me, or I’m going to be wondering about it all night. If we get attacked and I’m hurt because I’m distracted because of you, then I’m blaming you.”

Izuna flinched, clearly not liking the implication. He remained silent, however.

“I’m still waiting for you to tell me,” Toka pushed. “Come on. I have to leave soon, you know?”

“I…I….” His face got even redder.

“Izuna!” Toka snapped, finally getting impatient.

“I’m your soulmate, dammit!” Izuna finally shouted.

His breathing immediately stopped, and he flinched, as though he was waiting for Toka to lash out at him.

No matter how she had suspected that might be the reason that he had come, it was still surprising to hear. She had to fight back her shock, however. Izuna needed reassurance that Toka wasn’t upset. The Uchiha were actually very sensitive, something that she had found out with his older brother, and the last thing that she wanted to do was to scare him away.

“I figured that was what you were here about,” she informed him, forcing her voice to come out as calm. She strode across the room toward him and grabbed his hand, pulling him to his feet. “Don’t freak out over it, okay? I like you, Izuna, and I have to issues with that at all.”

“Not even with all of the rumors that are going around about me?” Izuna blurted out.

Toka rolled her eyes. “I don’t pay attention to rumors,” she informed him. “You’d better keep your eyes in their sockets from now on, though. Whoever’s ass you were looking at earlier today…you’d better not be staring at it again.”

“But I was staring at _your_ ass,” he told her.

His eyes widened again, and he slapped a hand over his mouth. Toka closed her eyes as she fought back the urge to laugh. “I guess it’s alright if you stare at my ass, then,” she allowed, unable to keep the laughter out of her voice.

She leaned forward and pressed her lips against his cheek. “Of course, you’re going to have to wine and dine me first,” she informed him as she pulled away, enjoying the awestruck look on his face once again. She could get used to his open facial expressions. He was so innocent still, and she loved it. “I expect a date tomorrow night after I’m rested up from duty tonight.”

“O-of course,” Izuna blurted, his face twisting into a large smile. “It’ll be the best date of your life!”

“I’m counting on it,” she said as she turned around and walked toward the door. Before she walked out, she turned around and looked at him with a crooked smirk. “Impress me enough, and I might even kiss you goodnight.”

She winked at him before she turned and left the small shack, surprised with herself. She normally wasn’t much for flirting, but Izuna made it _fun_. She really liked him, and she was looking forward to getting to know her soulmate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There it is, folks! Feel free to let me know what you thought, and if there is anything else that you would like to see in this universe, then let me know that too!


End file.
